


The Principal of Drowning

by ancientrelic



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale, Naruto
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Crossover, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Frenemies, Gen, Minor Violence, Other, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-04
Updated: 2018-04-04
Packaged: 2019-04-18 11:05:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14211798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ancientrelic/pseuds/ancientrelic
Summary: It was like fighting to keep your head above water; the undertow threatening to drag you down, the waves beating against you relentlessly.It's the principal of drowning; the sweet temptation of giving in, the release of letting the water carry you away.





	The Principal of Drowning

**Author's Note:**

> This little plot-bunny has lived in my head for ages... I love the idea of a badass Kagome butting heads with an equally badass Kisame, but both of them are too stubborn to confront it. The concept for this stems from the plot device of Kagome being left behind to wander time as the sole protector of the Shikon no Tama, and how she might interact with people in the Narutoverse after all her adventures in the Feudal Era. There will definitely be some liberties taken, but hopefully everything will make sense as the story unfolds.
> 
> The story is three chapters, and already completed, but will be updated as the remaining chapters are edited. 
> 
> Originally posted at https://www.fanfiction.net/s/6750313/1/The-Principal-of-Drowning

It was a dark and stormy night.

Well actually…

It wasn’t quite night, so it wasn’t dark out…and it wasn’t stormy _per say_ , it was more—foggy.

The air was thick with a sound-choking fog that he had created. Because what Itachi wanted, Itachi got. End of story.

Now, as an assassin for hire, he could understand the concept of ‘cover’ and therefore 'fog'; and just _why_ it was useful, and just _what_ it was useful for. Yet one lingering factor was driving him crazy…they were currently on an espionage mission. Espionage, as in _spying_. And they were wearing illusions as disguises, to boot.

So why the fog??

Then of course, there was the cherry on top of all the other _bullshit_ mission parameters—they were spying on a _civilian._

“Our intel claims she is a civilian,” Itachi corrected offhandedly, as if reading his mind. “But I have reason to believe that there is much more to this woman than has been previously assumed.”

With that, Itachi turned away and made to move into the sleepy little town before them, confident in his assessment of the situation. Having no choice but to follow, Kisame trailed forward after his partner, an odd feeling of dread unfurling in his stomach as if to remind him of what the anagram _assume_ spelt.

 

* * *

 

“Why won't you people _just leave me alone?!”_

Every word was punctuated with a fierce, downward strike that seemed to reverberate all the way through Samehada, through his locked wrists and up into his shoulders. 

This girl…this petite, frail looking girl was so skilled with her own strange blade that it had him on the defensive. Kisame ducked a swipe that could have severed his head from his neck and rolled to parry a low hit to his knees.

Her motions were so quick and precise that he hadn’t even had time to stop and use a jutsu to his advantage. The moment the thought occurred to him, he realized that the girl had cleverly been keeping him in range so that he’d be restricted to fighting her in close combat. Kisame immediately pushed onto the offensive, swinging down with all his might and sending her small form skidding backwards. Hopping away, he watched her rise to her feet, dust of her legs, and crack her neck with a grunt.

“It won't work,” she called as he began flipping through his favourite hand signs. “Do you think you’re the first to come after me? You _aren’t_. Ninja have come for me before—and as you can see, _I’m still here_.”

It made logical sense, her argument, it really did. He could tell she was more than tough enough to take care of herself. That being said, she’d likely never fought someone of his calibre before…nor Itachi’s.

Spitting several water bullets at the girl, Kisame noted that it had remained a one-on-one battle. He didn’t have another moment to dwell however, because the girl and her sword started doing something rather peculiar. A wind current began forming around her body, whipping her hair and short kimono into the air. Yellow light began to streak from her form, the sword glowing with the same visible power as his bullets approached her. Suddenly, time seemed to slow to an absolute crawl.

“ _Bakaryuuha!!!”_ was her battle cry, and she swung her sword towards his oncoming attack with an explosion of golden light and wind.

Sparkling beams of the yellow light mixed in with the wind to create mini cyclones twisting at impossible speeds—they spun towards his attack and easily overtook it. As the two attacks collided, they released a giant shockwave of raw chakra that splintered the closest trees that still remained standing after their initial blows had been traded.

As the wave of the girl’s chakra washed over him, the sheer strength it left in its wake made him stagger. Less than 30 minutes ago, the woman who stood before him had been nothing more than an unremarkable civilian out for an evening drink at the bar. Now she glared at him dangerously from her post-strike position, chest heaving, earth-stained with leaves tangled in her hair like a wild thing. 

Now she was a dangerous enemy with a strange but powerful chakra-blade, the likes of which he’d never seen before.

His water bullets were repelled with the shockwave, and once propelled by the cyclones her swing had created, they came flying back at him with twice the speed he’d shot them with. By some miracle they didn’t impact—a thick wall of earth rose before him, effectively shielding him from his rebounding attack.

“Itachi!” He groused. “What took you so long?!”

The wall before him shook and eventually crumbled under the assault of the bullets and cyclones, but the attack had dissipated. Kisame’s eyes wandered the clearing searching for their enemy until they landed on his partner who had hefted the girl, unconscious, over his shoulder.

“I was evaluating her fighting style. she is exceptionally efficient in close range combat—perhaps as efficient as any non-ninja could be.”

“I noticed,” was his scathing reply.

As usual, Itachi was unruffled by his snarky tone.

“I attempted to trap her with Tsukiyomi,” the Uchiha continued, “and yet it was ineffective. Her mental barriers are too strong for me to breach.”

“Seriously? Is that even _possible?”_

“And, I cannot touch her sword.”

The both glanced down to the now rusty blade lying in the dirt with curiosity. Kisame crouched and reached out to grasp the hilt, but was surprised—and burnt—when he was zapped with a rather strong voltage of power that seemed to emanate from the blade itself.

“What the—” He promptly withdrew his hand and took a step back. His words were cut off as both the blade and the girl glowed a brilliant yellow, and the blade disappeared.

“Now that that particular issue has been taken care of, what shall we do now?” Kisame’s tone was snide, and he rubbed his smarting hand. He nodded at the limp form of the girl on his partner’s shoulder, half curious to learn her secrets but mostly just wishing to never have to see her face again. Her angry blue eyes came to mind, and he blinked them away.

“We proceed to a secure location for interrogation. There are many questions that need to be asked, it seems.”

 

* * *

 

“I will ask you again. What is your name?” Itachi spoke slowly, his voice carefully neutral.

“My name is Kagome Higurashi,” she said again, glaring at his partner as best she could from her position at the base of the tree she was bound to.

“Impossible. Why you feel the need to maintain such an obvious lie—”

“ _Goddamn it_ , it isn’t a lie!!” Kagome snapped. “Why would I lie so ‘obviously’?? And better yet, what reason would I have to lie to you about my name? You’ve already singled me out for a reason. I think there are probably more important questions that you ought to be asking.” she snorted, turning her head away.

Kisame studied her carefully. Her eyes were bright with anger, and her chest was heaving from her shouting and straining at the ropes she was bound with. Her sword was still nowhere to be found, but he figured that Itachi would pull the answers from her eventually. All he was to do for now was mind the fire and cook their dinner, and he did so willingly. This girl, Kagome, was a handful.

“For one,” she continued, “Why _me?_ And why _KIDNAP_ me instead of just discussing it with me like a rational human being?!”

“Cease your incessant shrieking.” Itachi snapped. “You seem familiar with the interrogation process, so you should understand that I will ask you questions, and you will provide me with answers.”

“I will _provide_ you with _no answers_ ,” Kagome snapped back, mocking his tone, “until you _answer mine_.”

Itachi stared Kagome dead in the face, his own expression devoid of everything shy of disdain. She met his stare angrily, and for a few minutes there was a tense silence in the small clearing. In that brief span of time, Itachi seemed to reach a different level of understanding because a moment later he broke their staring contest with a blink and simply said,

“Very well.”

He walked over to the tree Kagome was tied to and deftly cut her bonds with a flick of his wrist. She stilled in surprise, allowing the ropes to slither and pool around her feet before she could make a move to flee. Her second of shock cost her, and Itachi quickly secured her wrists and ankles and she was bound once more.

“Sit.” he commanded. “I will speak, you will listen; and when I am done, you will answer my questions.” Itachi gestured to a spot near the fire.

“Or what?!” Kagome growled, her face flushed at being retied so efficiently.

“Do not test my patience any further,” Itachi said solemnly, turning to move to his spot near the other edge of their camp.

It was mildly entertaining to water her struggle towards the log by the fire with both her hands and ankles bound, and he—moreso than Itachi, but really, who could tell?—watched with satisfaction as they ate their fish.

“Dinner and a show,” he commented snidely, waiting for a reaction from the girl.

“Shut your trap, _fish-face._ ” she snapped back, righting herself on the log and blowing her bangs out of her face with a puff of air.

“Shut yours, _shrimp_.” Kisame laughed. “I’m not the one tied up, being held hostage.”

“Oh yeah? Well your mom didn’t seem to mind it too much last night.”

Her comment took half a second to register, but when it did his blood almost immediately jumped to a roiling boil.

“ _Why you little—”_

“You heard me,” she snorted, giving him a dirty look down her nose.

“That is enough.” Itachi intoned, tossing the stick his fish had been roasted on into the fire. “I will now provide you with your answers, as you’ve… requested. You will remain silent and listen.”

Kagome huffed and glared at both of them carefully, but fell warily silent and her attention centred on Itachi. He allowed the silence to stretch for a glorious moment as he stared into the embers around the fringes of the flames.

“It is impossible for your name to be Kagome Higurashi,” he began solemnly, “because she is dead. The Higurashi clan was wiped out almost six years ago. There were no survivors of the massacre.”

“There was a massacre…?” confusion coloured Kagome's features.

“The Higurashi clan had a series of mountain shrines along the west border of Waterfall. They had lived peacefully there for many centuries because not many were prepared to brave the climb into the mountains that ring Earth country. One brave enough was a ninja whom had defected from Mist. He was injured and on the run, and the Shrine agreed to harbour him on the agreement that he would never raise a weapon while he was on their holy grounds. Things were fine for a time, but eventually the price on the man’s head brought others looking for him. When the head hunters arrived, the man was no longer able to keep his promise to the clan, and blood was shed. The fighting finished with a massacre of the shrine’s inhabitants when the man from Mist went into a blood-rage.”

Kagome and Kisame listened to Itachi in morbid silence. Kagome’s face was ashen and her expression was slack as she listened. Surprisingly, it was Kisame who broke the silence that followed his partner’s story.

“Why haven’t I heard of this?”

Itachi turned from the fire to his partner, holding the silence. “You were not privy to this mission. It is understandable why would not know these details.”

“That must mean…” Kagome’s voice cracked. “You were one of the head hunters sent for that guy’s head?”

“Correct. It was one of my first missions as a member of our current organization. When I arrived to take out the target, he had already destroyed the other ninja and most of the shrine. He was locked in battle with a survivor from the clan. Her name was Kagome Higurashi.”

“ _What?”_ a tendril of dread curled down Kagome’s spine.

“She was a priestess. She fought him with bows and arrows that glowed like pearls in the sun. However, her superior long range abilities eventually proved useless when he was close enough, and she was felled with a wound to her abdomen.”

“Do you—” Kagome stuttered. “—was it here?” she grabbed at her hip where the Jewel had emerged from her body so long ago.

“Yes,” Itachi seemed surprised. “I killed the rogue while he was knelt over the woman. He was remorseful that he had her blood on his hands, and he did not fight back. When I left, the priestess had not yet succumbed to her wounds but it was certain to become her fate. The wounds were fatal.”

“So you just left her there to die?!” Kagome couldn’t hide her shock and disgust. 

“I am no healer,” he replied by way of explanation. “It is not my duty to save lives, only take them. But this is why you cannot be her—she is dead.”

“You have no proof that she— _I_ actually died. How can you say that I’m lying?” Kagome retorted angrily.

“The simplest answer aside, you do not emit the same power as the priestess. You do not share the same physical characteristics. It is without doubt that you are a different person…perhaps if someone else saw you, they could believe your story. I, however, do not. My eyes do not lie.”

Almost immediately, Kagome realized that whoever Itachi had been speaking about was likely a reincarnation or another form of herself who had once lived in this world. Now, judging by his physical description, she wondered if it was Kikyo that he was describing. She toyed with the idea of playing up reincarnation or even amnesia, but finally decided that it would be best to let them draw their own conclusions.

Kisame had remained quiet through the history lesson, but now focused on the girl who claimed to be a dead priestess in an attempt to gauge her reaction. She seemed lost in thought; her eyebrows deeply furrowed as she stared into space. As if she’d sensed his eyes on her, she blinked and met his gaze.

“Well, that’s all fine and dandy I suppose,” she said with a grin. “ _I’ve_ never lived in northwest Waterfall, and I’ve never seen either of your ugly mugs before now. _My_ name is Kagome Higurashi. And you can ask me the question as many times as you want, but my answer will never change.”

“Very well.” Itachi rose. “You may consider yourself our hostage. You will be travelling with us until further notice. Do not try to escape, or you will suffer the consequences.”

He turned to Kisame, who was still staring at Kagome with a half furious, half constipated expression. “Pack up camp. We will leave on the hour.” Itachi directed. “Keep an eye on the girl. I will return.”

“What—“ his question fell on deaf ears, as his partner had already disappeared. 

“Clean up caaaaaamp,” Kagome mocked. “Watch the girl. We leave in an hoooour.” 

She snorted.  “Sounds like you’re more his slave than his partner.”

“Watch it,” Kisame snarled, baring his teeth in her general direction. “It’ll be easier for me to keep track of you if you’re unconscious.”

“Do it, I dare you.” Kagome taunted.

“Don’t test my patience. I don’t have nearly as much as my _partner_.” he warned, then turned to set about erasing their campsite from existence.

 

* * *

 

“Itachi,” Kagome chirped sweetly, tugging at the rope that bound her wrists. Itachi had been leading her by the hands for the better part the day.

“Itachi,” she repeated.

The nin in question steadfastly ignored her. Kagome held back a snort.

“Itachi,”

As he watched Kagome irritate his partner, Kisame thought back to the night prior when Kagome had tried to escape. She’d successfully shirked her bindings, but didn’t make it out of the ring of firelight before Itachi had appeared before her.

“I allowed this to test your ability for stealth and your tenacity to escape.” Itachi had said by means of explanation. 

It was Kisame’s turn to snort.

Now Itachi was leading her around by the wrists like some kind of farm animal, and Kagome hadn’t been pleased by the restriction of her movement.

“Itachi.”

“Itachi.”

“Ita _chiiiii_.”

“Ita— _oof_!”

Kagome hadn’t been paying attention as she swung her hands, doing her best to annoy her captors. She’d been focused on twisting one hand far enough around to reach the knot that secured her wrists, but Itachi had simply stopped walking.

“You will _cease_ the repetition of my name.” Itachi said stonily, “Or I will silence you in the most unpleasant and non-lethal manner I can think of.”

Kagome sneered at Kisame when he couldn’t hold back a bark of laughter. He could think of at least seven rather painful ways Itachi had silenced people in the past—but unfortunately, they couldn’t kill her. At least not today.

“Look, I’m not going to get anywhere on foot away from you guys. This is killing my wrists and ruining my posture! My back hurts. I’ll walk with you and not cause any trouble, I promise. Tie me up at night if you have to, but I can’t stand this.” Kagome held her wrists up to Itachi pleadingly, although her expression gave nothing away.

“You’ve given me no reason to indicate that anything you’ve said is truthful.” the Uchiha replied.

“I’ll answer your questions,” Kagome upped the ante bluntly, dropping her hands.

Kisame reined in his surprise, searching his partner’s face for any indication of how he was going to respond. Seeing nothing of note, he turned his attention back to Kagome who had once again raised her hands in supplication. Itachi blinked owlishly and turned away.

Kagome let her arms fall and her shoulders slump in defeat. As her arms fell, her wrists separated and the rope slithered down to fall loose at her feet. A small but satisfied smile passed across her face, and she rolled her neck, popped her shoulders, and twisted her back. After at least half-a-dozen satisfying cracks, she simply beamed at Itachi.

“Thanks!”

Kisame snorted again. If he didn’t know better, he’d suspect the Uchiha was going soft.

Itachi immediately resumed walking, and Kagome turned her nose up at Kisame before sauntering off after his partner. She kept a steady pace beside him, her arms swinging freely and making the sides of her kimono flutter.

Kisame took another moment to study her as he walked sedately behind his partner and their _hostage_. 

She still wore the same summer kimono, and although the colours seemed faded with age, it was by no means ratty. It looked like a sturdy but light material, likely for ease of movement. A kimono didn’t seem like something a swordsman would be found wearing, however, and his distaste for her attitude was jumbled up with his curiosity. Her legs were long and lithe, and her form was lightly muscled; again, with no suggestion of an ability to wield such a great-sword. She wore no armour whatsoever, and ankle-high, dare he say it— _dainty_ boots. Her long dark hair fell in loose waves to the base of her simple obi.

What kind of person was she?

She looked like nothing more than a civilian, but her proficiency with a blade suggested otherwise. The way she held herself and the way she moved suggested some kind of training, and the way that she spoke suggested she’d grown up well off as she was both well spoken and well educated.

“Stop staring at my butt, fish-face. Eyes forward.” She tossed over his shoulder, giving him a sly grin.

“Like there’s even anything there to stare at, shrimp.” Kisame snapped back, but turned his gaze to the horizon, surprised to have been caught looking in her direction at all.

 

* * *

 

“Hey, Itachi…” Kagome cut the silence as they sat around their campfire for the night.

Itachi didn’t respond, but looked up from the flames to meet her questioning stare.

“Didn’t you want to ask me some questions?” she reminded him, picking at the tufts of grass near her ankles. “You haven’t tied me up again and I did promise to answer some more questions.”

“Are you a trustworthy person, _Ka-go-me_?” Itachi questioned solemly, his blank expression at odds with his tone.

“What kind of question is that?” Kagome wrinkled her nose, staring into the trees behind Itachi and avoiding his piercing stare.

After a long uncomfortable silence, Kagome sighed before pointedly turning back to Itachi.

“I don’t go back on my word,” she said with a gusty sigh. “I never break a promise that I make, no matter whom it’s to. Obviously, I wouldn’t promise to something completely stupid but if it’s one thing that I’ve learned over my lifetime, it’s the value of honesty and promises. I take them very seriously.”

“Make a _promise_ , then.” The sneer in Itachi’s voice was palpable. “When I choose to ask them of you, you will answer my questions.”

“I—”

Kagome paused to weigh her options.

She currently didn’t possess the power to free herself from her captors—Itachi’s abilities were still a complete mystery. He had tried to break her mental barriers, but she wasn’t worried about him trying that again. They were more than strong enough to keep anyone she came across out, and she was confident that there wasn’t anyone so skilled enough in these lands to test her in that way. 

Kisame was more than skilled with a sword, and she suspected that there was more to both him and his sword than what she’d seen so far. Together, they were a formidable pair and she was outnumbered. That alone was enough to stop any escape plans in their tracks, especially with so many other unknowns in the equation. As long as they were powerful enough to keep her subdued, she’d follow them willingly enough. If she found a weakness between them she knew she could exploit, she would escape. There were few who’d been able to hold on to her as long as they had already, and Kagome knew it wouldn’t last.

“As long as you can overpower me, I’ll answer your questions to the best of my ability.” Kagome said slowly. “If you show me weakness, well… I’ll owe you nothing.”

Itachi’s eyes widened minutely in surprise.

“There is no weakness for you to exploit,” he said by ways of agreement. 

“Is that a challenge?” Kagome’s eyes glittered with mischief, a grin stretching wide across her face.

“It’s a fact, you shrimp.” Kisame replied. “There is no weakness between the two of us that you’ll ever find.”

“We’ll see about that,” Kagome smiled sweetly at him, and a tendril of uncertainty unwound itself in the back of Kisame’s mind. Scoffing, he turned back to the fire.

_Why is it so uncomfortable to meet her eyes?_

“Well, with business out of the way I have a request to make.” Kagome turned back to Itachi. “I have no clue where we are or where we’re going, but it’d be nice if I could grab my travelling stuff. It’ll make all of our lives easier, believe me.”

Itachi merely raised an eyebrow in question.

“I left it in a town just north of where you found me, I was there to heal the leader of the village.”

“We need nothing else to slow us down.” Itachi said dismissively, before turning his attention back to the fire.

“Oh come on, it’s just a bag I carry on my back.” Kagome scoffed. “It won’t slow us down, it’s travelling essentials. I’m no ninja, I need a few things here and there to get by.”

Itachi didn’t seem interested in agreement, so Kagome decided to sweeten the deal.

“I’ll cook dinner every night,” she offered. “I roast a mean rabbit.”

Kisame couldn’t help but perk up at the thought of no longer having to cook fish, and eating something more substantial that was made by someone other than Itachi. The Uchiha always stole the bigger fish, and when it was his turn to cook their dinner was always so burnt it was like munching on cooked bones. He glanced out of the corner of his eyes at his partner, who seemed to catch his gaze without meeting his eye contact. Turning to Kagome, Itachi gave her an undecipherable stare for several long moments before speaking.

“We are less than a day’s travel from the town of which you speak. Tomorrow you will retrieve your belongings, and you will be satisfied. You will request nothing else of me—do not forget your place. You are a hostage, not an equal. Kisame, keep an eye on her. I will be back.” Itachi ordered, standing and disappearing into the shadows of the night.

Kagome stared at the spot where he’d disappeared for a long moment before a grin split her face. 

“ _Yes!!!_ ” she laughed, stretching backwards on the grass and completely ignoring Kisame who was steaming at being left to babysit yet again. “This could be much worse.”

“You bet it could, shrimp.” Kisame said with a threatening chuckle.

“Shut it, fish-face.” Kagome waved her hand in dismissal without a glance in his direction. “I’m not going to let you take this victory away from me.”

Kisame growled. Kagome lifted one leg up and crossed it over her other knee, bouncing her foot idly.

“You’re just jealous I’ve already gotten more words out of your partner than you have in all the years you’ve worked with him.” she giggled.

“Hardly,” Kisame snorted. “Itachi and I have an… understanding, of sorts.”

“Sure,” Kagome snorted. “Whatever you want to call it. You know, you should really approach him with a different method if you’re trying to get it in.”

“Get it—just _what_ are you trying to imply?!” Kisame felt his face flush despite himself.

“You heard me,” Kagome snickered. “Envy is just such a nasty emotion, you should be more careful. What, with your lovely complexion, I hardly doubt that green would do you any justice.”

“Why you self-righteous, troublemaking, loud-mouthed piece of sh—” Kisame was on his feet, his volume climbing with every word. A cool hand on his shoulder silenced him immediately.

“Kisame.” Itachi said quietly. “I suggest you ignore her attempts to rile you.”

Kagome continued to bounce her foot with a quiet chuckle.

Fuming with both anger and embarrassment, Kisame returned to his spot by the fire as he silently plotted their _hostage_ ’s demise.

 

* * *

 

The next morning, Kagome was the first to rise. The sky was still speckled with starts, the easterly tree-line just beginning to glow with the morning sun. Itachi was nowhere to be seen, and Kisame was snoring softly by the glowing embers of the fire.

Kagome closed her eyes and sent a wave of her power out into the forest, searching for any sign of Itachi’s aura. An energy signature tingled some ways off to the west, but it didn’t appear to move as she inspected it. Itachi seemed unconcerned or unaware of her movement about the camp, so she shrugged and knelt to the forest floor. Focusing her energy in her hands, she placed them amongst the roots of the nearest tree and reached along the roots deep into the earth, searching for the closest water source.

Kagome’s mind seemed to writhe in the pure, earth energy, and she felt her spirits soar with the life of the land around her. Trees carried a natural sentience, and Kagome was grateful every time she connected with them because they gave off such a warm, welcoming and _familiar_ energy that was comforting beyond no other. Once the tree had pointed her towards the little creek that flowed nearby, Kagome filled the tree with her own energy in thanks and withdrew from it. The branches above her creaked and groaned as her power thrummed through them, waving to her in the morning breeze.

“Thank you,” she whispered, patting the trunk.

Glancing to confirm that Kisame was still asleep, Kagome set off in the direction of the creek somewhere between where she’d sensed Itachi’s presence and their humble little campsite.

The water of the creek trickled by merrily, and Kagome heard it before she saw it. Wide rocks covered in moss lined the small embankment, and she judged that at some point, the water must have been much higher—perhaps a river. The water ran crisp and clean, and without wasting more time Kagome shucked off her obi, outer kimono, boots and socks, until she was left in her undergarments and the sheath she wore under her kimono.

Picking her way along the slick rocks, Kagome knelt down and dipped her hands into the water, splashing her face and neck. Without her bag, there was little she could do to wash fully but there was no way she was going to continue travelling with two men and smelling dirtier than a pig. She flipped her long hair forward over her shoulder, and dipped her head into the water, combing through her dark locks with her fingers. Her sheath was wet, but it wouldn’t matter for long—the sun was already warm on her back. 

When she was finished with her hair, Kagome returned to her knees and twisted her hair into a braid. As she looked up, she was surprise to catch Itachi sitting in a tree on the other side of the creek, watching her contemplatively.

“Good morning,” Kagome greeted politely, flicking the braid into place and standing up. Her state of dress lingered in the back of her mind—her sheath was translucent with water, and her bindings were the only things protecting her modesty from this veritable stranger. Itachi didn’t seem interested in her body, however, despite the unseemly amount of skin currently bare to his view.

“You did not attempt to flee,” Itachi stated, though Kagome suspected it was intended as a question.

“No,” Kagome smiled. “I’m smarter than that, as I’ve told you.”

“Hn,” Itachi made a noncommittal noise, glancing away.

Kagome turned and made her way back towards her clothes, the morning breeze chilling her skin. Itachi’s gaze returned to her as her back was presented to him, his eyes tracing her form and lingering on the pale scars that littered her back.

It was painfully clear to him that she’d been through more than he’d been informed of; some of the scars were long and jagged while others were round and puckered, like she’d been pierced. The morning wind lifted her shift to bare the soft flesh of her thighs and stomach, and Itachi’s eyes widened in disbelief. There was only one mark that marred her front—a puckered starburst shape near her hip that she’d pointed to the other night.

_Curious…_ Itachi’s eyes narrowed in inspection, but Kagome quickly finished dressing and hid all her marks from view.

“Shall we?” Kagome turned to him, taking in his puzzled look. _He must have seen my scars._

Itachi cleared the creek in a single bound and landed a little ways ahead of her, beginning the walk back to camp. Kagome followed wordlessly, hoping that his questions wouldn’t be about any of her scars.

 _Surely there’s no way to explain that they’re caused by years of war against a demon and his offspring,_ Kagome thought to herself with a chuckle.

_If he does question me, I’d better have a believable answer ready._


End file.
